'Il convient aussi de saluer une fois de plus le talent et le métier de John-Graham Hall en Geôlier et Grand Inquisiteur. Ce fidèle de la Monnaie répond toujours aussi admirablement aux exigences vocales et théâtrales de ses rôles. /// It is also fitting to once again recognize the talent and profession of John-Graham Hall as a Jailer and Grand Inquisitor. This faithful of La Monnaie always responds admirably to the vocal and theatrical requirements of his roles.'

Il Prigioniero‚ La MonnaieOlyrix (January 2018)

'Autre rôle surprenant‚ celui de l’inquisiteur et geôlier tenu par John Graham-Hall. Ténor aux vibratos mémorables‚ il incarne l’homme machiavélique dont les défauts faits de perfidie‚ de vices et de cruauté dessinent des angles théâtraux d’une grande force. /// Another surprising role is that of the inquisitor and jailer held by John Graham-Hall. Tenor with memorable vibrato‚ he embodies the Machiavellian man whose faults made of treachery‚ vice and cruelty draw theatrical angles of great strength.'

Osud‚ Opera NorthOpera Magazine (December 2017)

'John Graham-Hall as a neurotic‚ self-obsessed Živný gave everything he had putting across Rodney Blumer’s smooth-flowing translation; just as well‚ since the score tends to luxuriance. '

Osud‚ Opera NorthSeen and Heard International (November 2017)

'The director excels herself in her work in this opera assisted in a major part by the masterful sung and acted interpretation of John Graham-Hall as the composer. He gave one of the most convincing sung and acted interpretations than I have seen for many a year on the operatic stage‚ wholly memorable and commendable. '

Osud‚ Opera NorthThe Sunday Times (November 2017)

'...she gets compelling performances from John Graham-Hall (Zivny)‚ who gets the lion’s share of the music and dramatic focus...'

Osud‚ Opera NorthBachTrack.com (October 2017)

'Tenor John Graham-Hall as Živný excelled in his dominant role‚ his clear tones and dramatic charisma bringing much credibility to a difficult character. He was wincingly effective in Act 2 as he viciously berated Míla (an impressive Giselle Allen) and then begged for her forgiveness. '

Osud‚ Opera NorthPlanet Hugill (October 2017)

'The central role of Zivny took sometime to get going‚ for much of the first act John Graham-Hall was an observer. But central to the opera was a pair of monologues and Graham-Hall delivered a towering performance. '

Osud‚ Opera NorthThe Guardian (October 2017)

'John Graham-Hall‚ a connoisseur of Janácek’s difficult‚ high-tenor roles‚ handled the challenging part of Živný elegantly...'

Osud‚ Opera NorthThe Stage (October 2017)

'Opera North nevertheless fields a strong cast‚ with John Graham-Hall focused as the troubled Zivny...'

Osud‚ Opera NorthThe Times (October 2017)

'Osud is about a composer (John Graham-Hall‚ compellingly driven) so fixated on writing his new opera that he overlooks the despair in his wife (Giselle Allen‚ very touching) or the legacy of trauma crippling his son. '

L’enfant et les sortilèges‚ Opera NorthThe Guardian (September 2017)

'This is less heavyweight than it sounds‚ thanks to Arden’s impeccable judgment of the work’s tone‚ which starts as comedy and darkens as the piece progresses. The foxtrot for the Teapot (Graham-Hall again) and Chinese Cup (Ann Taylor) had the first-night audience in fits...'

L’enfant et les sortilèges‚ Opera NorthThe Telegraph (September 2017)

'Wallis Giunta is a delight as the knobbly-kneed child and there are splendid cameos from John Graham-Hall‚ Fflur Wyn‚ and Quirijn de Lang in a variety of roles.'

L’enfant et les sortilèges‚ Opera NorthThe Times (September 2017)

'...there are vividly characterised multitasking performances from John Graham-Hall...'

The Cunning Little Vixen‚ La MonnaieOpera Magazine (July 2017)

'The excellent cast was dominated by powerful and vivacious Foxie of Lenneke Ruiten‚ the robust but lyrical Forester of Andrew Schroeder‚ the assetive Harasta of Vincent Le Texier and John Graham-Hall’s loveable Schoolmaster.'

The Cunning Little Vixen‚ La MonnaieForum Opera (March 2017)

'Pour être complet‚ il faudrait mentionner aussi ... John Graham-Hall‚ qui offre un numéro unique en maître d’école aigri et aviné. /// To be complete‚ mention should also be made of ... John Graham-Hall‚ who offers a unique number as a schoolmaster‚ embittered and angry.'

The Cunning Little Vixen‚ La MonnaieGBOpera Magazine (March 2017)

'Validi anche John Graham-Hall e Alexander Vassiliev nel ruolo‚ rispettivamente‚ del maestro di scuola e del parroco‚ resi entrambi con efficacia e sensibilità.///Valid also John Graham-Hall and Alexander Vassiliev in the respective roles of the school teacher and the pastor‚ made with both efficiency and sensitivity.'

'John Graham-Hall was a superb Aron... his phrasing was masterful‚ introducing nuances in every word with clear diction. He literally owns the character and‚ in vivid contrast with Moses‚ develops every possible side of it: the seduction of the proud prophet‚ the helpless‚ abandoned brother‚ and the ashamed false shaman‚ at the end‚ almost a caricature before severe Moses.'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOOpera Magazine (April 2016)

'The only humour came from the foolery of Monostatos‚ the talented John Graham-Hall in a dark suit and a long‚ ageing-hippie wig.'

'One of the most striking aspects of this new production is just how well each singer’s voice suits that of the character being portrayed. Amidst a plethora of very strong performances... As Shuisky John Graham-Hall’s tenor speaks of calculation and fear'

Boris Godunov‚ Royal Opera HouseOpera Today (March 2016)

'John Graham-Hall is superb as a sinister‚ sycophantic Shuisky‚ singing with sly sleekness;'

'At the heart of this production are four shatteringly rich and expressive performances... John Graham-Hall as the duplicitous Prince Shiusky...'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOBachTrack.com (February 2016)

'Monostatos is a thankless role to sing (the lamentable pantomime booing at the curtain call showed that)‚ but John Graham-Hall sang it well‚ bringing an appropriate – or inappropriate – lust to "Alles fühlt der Liebe Freuden"'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOBoulezian (February 2016)

'John Graham-Hall’s Cockney Monostatos showed what a truly versatile artist this is; it is only a few months ago that I saw him as Schoenberg’s Aron in Paris'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOMark Ronan.com (February 2016)

'Dramatically effective support from...John Graham-Hall as an eminently whiny and ill-dressed Monostatos'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOMusicOMH (February 2016)

'John Graham-Hall is both comic and creepy as Monostatos'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOOpera Britannia (February 2016)

'John Graham-Hall made a dark and seedy Monostatos‚ his creepy presence felt more than usual as he leered from above the stage‚ lecherously spying on Pamina’s reunion with the Queen of the Night'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOSeen & Heard International (February 2016)

'As Monostatos‚ ENO stalwart John Graham-Hall comes across as an East End funeral director; and very well it works‚ in the context of this production‚ as well'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOThe Stage (February 2016)

'John Graham-Hall creates an oleaginous‚ cockney Monostatos'

The Magic Flute‚ ENOWhat’sOnStage.com (February 2016)

'As for John Graham-Hall’s angular Monostatos‚ he proves that there is little on earth more evil than a man with a combover. (The poor tenor seems to be cornering the market in repellent figures‚ with this following on from his mammarily endowed Witch of Endor in Glyndebourne’s Saul)'

Boris Godunov‚ Royal Opera HouseOpera Magazine (January 2016)

'...from Shuisky’s narration about a spinning-top (as played by John Graham-Hall‚ on wonderfully insinuating musico-dramatic form‚ Shuisky was one character who was meaningfully fleshed out)'

Moses und Aron‚ National Opera de Paris‚ BastilleOpera (January 2016)

'John Graham-Hall as Aron offered an equally intense interpretation‚ vocally and dramatically. With Graham-Hall‚ leaner of voice than the lyric or heroic tenors who are usually cast‚ the word was once again placed centre stage‚ serving not only to exaggerate Aron’s stultifying verbosity‚ but also to bring him much closer to Moses'

'That was the case also for John Graham-Hall’s Aron. We think of Graham-Hall as a ‘character’ tenor‚ a Basilio or a Monastatos‚ yet his repertoire is far more varied than that‚ and who would want a ‘non-character’ tenor? (Sadly‚ many do.) Aron has been portrayed by tenors of many varieties‚ including bel canto ‘specialists’ – the reality is always more complex – such as Chris Merritt‚ for Boulez no less‚ and of course many a Heldentenor. A great strength of Graham-Hall’s performance was his complexity; Aron emerged more as a chameleon than one often sees – or hears. He could adapt‚ marshal his resources to the situation. Even at the moment of apparent defeat‚ a Mime-like obsequiousness or infantilism‚ immediately following upon Moses’ outburst‚ resolved itself into some of Aron’s initial composure‚ faith‚ and/or advocacy'

'… in the arguably more difficult role of Aron‚ the British tenor John Graham-Hall proved himself not only a lithe and cunning singer but a brave actor as well‚ singing the later passages while tangled in metres of ink-slicked audio tape'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaOpera (September 2015)

'Musically and dramatically‚ John Graham-Hall as the Witch of Endor delivered a characteristically reliable performance'

'Saul’s Beckett-like encounter with the Witch of Endor are profoundly tragic and disturbing...one deftly-made coup after another‚ culminating in the unforgettably repulsive staging of Saul’s encounter with the Witch of Endor...John-Graham Hall’s hermaphrodite Witch of Endor is a brilliant creation‚ sung with an unearthly sense of resignation'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaGuardian (July 2015)

'The way in which his envy of the triumphant David morphs into murderous hatred is graphically charted right up to his confrontation with John Graham Hall’s pendulous-breasted Witch of Endor‚ still crazily suckling after all these years'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaIndependent (July 2015)

'Saul’s end is hauntingly strange‚ singing his aria ‘Wretch that I am’ while running in desperate circles through a blasted landscape‚ before being suckled (milkily) by the hermaphrodite Witch of Endor (sung by the Protean John Graham-Hall)'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaMusicOMH.com (July 2015)

'...this visually stunning‚ gloriously sung production by Barrie Kosky‚ making his Glyndebourne directing debut and providing the house with a definite hit‚ received with the nearest thing to wild abandon which this sophisticated audience can muster...John Graham-Hall made much of the small role of the Witch of Endor'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaOpera Today.com (July 2015)

'Thankfully the role of the Witch of Endor was cast with a man‚ as it should be‚ and John Graham-Hall brought a wealth of experience to the role. Kosky seems to have seen the scene in Lear-like blasted heath terms. By now Christopher Purves’ Saul was stripped to his boxer shorts and John Graham-Hall’s witch appeared out of the ground and was an old crone also stripped to the waist with huge pendulous breasts on which Saul sucked‚ and the voice of Samuel spoke through Saul so that Purves sang both roles. It created an incredible piece of theatre from what is one of the strongest scenes in the oratorio'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaTelegraph (July 2015)

'...a weirdly poignant vision of Saul’s visit to the hermaphroditic Witch of Endor‚ during which milky wisdom is suckled from the crone’s withered dug'

Saul‚ Glyndebourne Festival OperaTimes (July 2015)

'...enlivened by shafts of unapologetic grotesquerie. John Graham-Hall’s Witch of Endor‚ replete with enormous floppy breasts that Purves sucks like a geriatric infant‚ is the pick of the latter. You could say he milks the role'

'Marc Adam assembled an excellent cast. English tenor John Graham Hall as Peter Grimes possesses an appropriate voice for Britten heroes‚ not the dramatic tenor often associated with Grimes‚ but the lighter‚ character voice that characterizes the Aschenbach of Death in Venice‚ another of Mr. Hall’s Britten roles. Mr. Hall has an affecting presence and the vocal stamina to have seen the role through this production’s expressionist requirements'

'The chief interest of this DVD is in seeing the details of Graham-Hall’s performance that were lost in the opera house. Less ascetic and head-bound than Bostridge‚ his is an Aschenbach of the flesh‚ right from the start. His lips quiver‚ his forehead beads with sweat as he watches Tadzio (the athletic Sam Zaldivar)‚ and he struggles painfully with himself before succumbing to trembling‚ nauseous death. It’s a beautifully sung performance‚ and there’s a Pears-like edge that adds danger and drama here to the voice - at its finest in the sudden musical release of "Should I go beyond the mountains?".'

'The solo singers are tested to the extreme because of the intensity of Birtwistle’s writing... and John Graham-Hall Fool’s often reached the manic heights of Wagner’s Mime who gets his own riddles in Siegfried'

Eugene Onegin‚ Metropolitan OperaOpera Today.com (November 2013)

'As Triquet‚ the French teacher‚ John Graham-Hall showed a pleasant and accurate high tenor voice in delivering the little serenade to Tatiana at her party'

Eugene Onegin‚ Metropolitan OperaLatinos Post.com (September 2013)

'John Graham-Hall gave a charming portrayal of the handicapped Triquet in his brief scene...the performers created a tremendous amount of depth and nuance in an unforgettable night'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaOpera (August 2013)

'...his Aschenbach was superb‚ ably vocalized and skillfully acted‚ conveying through a multitude of gestures and inflections the novelist’s diffidence‚ his self-confessed ’delight in fastidious choice’ and his eventual disintegration. It was without question a star performance'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaOpera Vilag.net (July 2013)

'Tenor John Graham-Hall gives an astonishingly virtuoso performance as the ageing writer Gustav von Aschenbach. His vocal delivery is exemplary in its many shades of tonal colours and wide-ranging dynamics‚ while his dramatic portrayal gives a moving account of the artist’s fascination with beauty and youth as a possible salvation from disintegration and from the inevitable‚ final demise. Graham-Hall (as‚ crucially‚ stage director Deborah Warner) treats the central theme with respect towards Britten who clearly identified with the dying artist...Graham-Hall’s mesmerizing portrayal...There were no surtitles but there was no need for them: diction was crystal clear'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaArts Desk.com (June 2013)

'Austere‚ beautiful‚ heartbreaking‚ streaked with genius - that goes for both Benjamin Britten’s last opera Death in Venice and Deborah Warner’s remarkable production of it for ENO‚ returning all too briefly to the Coliseum‚ with a superb central performance. Besiege the box office for one of the four remaining performances if you want to see contemporary operatic art refined to its most personal and powerful... The character’s attraction towards the boy is famously hard to pitch and John Graham-Hall’s assumption is magnetic‚ the eroticism smudged and ambiguous. He appears a thin‚ sandy‚ dry-skinned academic‚ proud of his reputation‚ pursing his lips in self-protection‚ smoking incessantly‚ evidently a man alone and easily self-embarrassed. He shows a remarkable command of body language. He adopts a hesitant swagger as he tells us of his willingness to experiment with life‚ then suddenly touches his mouth furtively as he draws on his cigarette‚ as if imagining a kiss. It would be an extraordinary performance just in physical terms‚ a Petrushka collapsing under a weight of sensual experience he is unprepared for‚ even if Graham-Hall were not also making his voice so subtly suited to his character’s indecisiveness‚ mixing overtones of Bach’s Evangelist‚ castrato and sometimes disconcertingly operatic tenor. Graham-Hall also convinces in implying that the whole show is in Von Aschenbach’s mind‚ these pictures of travels‚ hotels‚ beaches‚ are his imaginings‚ his dreams‚ his novel - so that the tricky scene where the gods Apollo and Dionysus have their pompous interchange over his sleeping body and soul obtain a credibility: this man dreams like this‚ he really does... The evening is profoundly moving‚ and a masterpiece of contemporary theatrical production in Britten’s centenary year'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaBachTrack.com (June 2013)

'The role of Gustav von Aschenbach‚ the ageing writer struck by a fatal infatuation for a beautiful young boy‚ is enormous‚ requiring the tenor to be on stage and fully involved for virtually the whole opera‚ running at nearly two and a half hours. For ENO last night‚ John Graham-Hall produced a bravura performance: clear of voice‚ melodious and utterly inhabiting the soul of Aschenbach as a once confident man slides into moral degeneration‚ unable to control his passions'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaClassical Source.com (June 2013)

'It is a performance of staggering power. The tenor once known for ingénu roles like Flute and Albert Herring presents a haggard and increasingly delusional man who is losing the battle against anno domini with failing dignity. The physical engagement with which Graham-Hall plays a character dominated by introspection is extraordinary in itself‚ but it is matched by the intelligence of his sung interpretation. in Aschenbach’s extended soliloquies the voice falters and breaks until‚ during his Socratic contemplation “Does beauty lead to wisdom‚ Phaedrus?”‚ he falls apart entirely and the only possible corollary is death. The subtleties in Warner’s conception of the piece sit well with Graham-Hall’s interpretation and probably drove the thinking behind it'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaFinancial Times (June 2013)

'Deborah Warner’s production has also been seen staged in Brussels and at La Scala‚ Milan‚ where it scored a notable success with English tenor John Graham-Hall in the all-encompassing role of Gustav von Aschenbach. Production and tenor are reunited here... Graham-Hall’s Aschenbach is more challenging and original. Highly charged from the outset‚ he embodies the struggle between Apollo and Dionysus which is at the heart of the opera with extraordinary immediacy‚ as if Aschenbach is being physically torn apart from within'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaGuardian (June 2013)

'...John Graham-Hall’s remarkable Aschenbach... In the end‚ Aschenbach obviously matters most. Some guardians of the Britten flame will find Graham-Hall insufficiently forbidding when compared with more obviously intellectual Aschenbachs‚ such as Peter Pears and Robert Tear‚ or Ian Bostridge in the 2007 performances‚ and he cannot summon their austere vocalism either. But Graham-Hall inhabits the role more convincingly than any of them. Aschenbach’s disintegration is harrowingly believable‚ and Graham-Hall manages to sing the role with a refreshing naturalness that goes with his always fine acting. Death in Venice emerges anew‚ without some of the archness to which Britten and his librettists were so susceptible‚ yet with its rich layers of meaning fully intact'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaIndependent (June 2013)

'I can’t imagine a more exquisitely achieved marriage of music‚ drama‚ and design...The central performances are stunning... For two unbroken hours John Graham-Hall brilliantly holds the stage‚ utterly believable and with every phrase pellucidly clear... A flawless evening'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaMusical Criticism.com (June 2013)

'Benjamin Britten’s centenary year is celebrated with an outstanding production of Death in Venice by the English National Opera. The high quality event‚ ENO’s revival of Deborah Warner’s 2007 production‚ serves not only as a worthy tribute to Britten‚ but also as a rewarding experience in the opera house. Tenor John Graham-Hall gives an astonishingly virtuoso performance as the ageing writer Gustav von Aschenbach. His vocal delivery is exemplary in its many shades of tonal colours and wide-ranging dynamics‚ while his dramatic portrayal gives a moving account of the artist’s fascination with beauty and youth as a possible salvation from disintegration and from the inevitable‚ final demise. Graham-Hall treats the central theme (as does‚ crucially‚ stage director Deborah Warner) with respect towards Britten who clearly identified with the dying artist...Graham-Hall’s mesmerizing portrayal'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaOpera Today.com (June 2013)

'John Graham-Hall...inhabiting the role with convincing dramatic presence and unaffected sincerity. It was the part which won him the 2012 Franco Abbiati prize for best male singer from the Italian National Association of Music Critics‚ and one could see why. Tall and thin‚ introverted and self-contained‚ dressed in an Edwardian pale suit‚ as he crumbled and disintegrated under the burden psycho-sexual anxiety‚ Graham-Hall was a visual emblem of the confrontation between Bourgeois Convention and Bohemian Chaos identified within Britten himself by W.H. Auden in an oft-quoted letter of the 1930s... Graham-Hall’s meticulously conceived body language and physical mannerisms... Aschenbach’s roaming soliloquies were supple and intoned with clarity; surtitles were absent and for once not needed... Graham-Hall aimed for clear resonance and direct communication; there was no exaggerated darkness in the tone‚ the middle register was focused‚ the top quite light. But this made the moments of despair all the more telling... Graham-Hall’s simple‚ pure reminiscence of Socrates’ tender dismissal of Phaedrus‚ accompanied by gentle harp accompaniment‚ was poignant but never sentimental'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaSeen & Heard International (June 2013)

'Whatever claims one might make for Peter Pears’s artistry‚ that would be an eccentric place to start‚ and Gustav von Aschenbach is a Pears role par excellence. Graham-Hall offered something far more telling: elusive yet unmistakeable dramatic truth. One felt that this was Aschenbach’s story; one both saw it through his eyes and saw him through the eyes of the story‚ if that makes any sense. It is a strenuous role indeed‚ but Graham-Hall used its very difficulty to great effect... Graham-Hall of course deserves the lion share of the credit for the dramatic truth of his descent...'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaStage (June 2013)

'Aschenbach is a role to which John Graham-Hall brings a sureness of dramatic understanding and developed acting skills that allow his interpretation to be listed among those of the work’s finest exponents thus far... With this superb realisation ENO’s season ends on a high note'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaSunday Express (June 2013)

'Graham-Hall brings out the anger and self-disgust of Aschenbach... this is an exquisite staging of Britten’s unsettling final work'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaThe Opera Critic.com (June 2013)

'English National Opera closes its current season with a golden show... ENO’s revival remains one of its finest achievements... John Graham-Hall is outstanding in the role. And what an extensive and demanding part this is (written for Peter Pears‚ then in his early sixties). Graham-Hall inhabits all of Aschenbach’s philosophies‚ fears‚ tantalisations‚ and not least the feeling of being the outsider; he holds the stage with a vivid but not overplayed portrayal that occasionally veers to Pears-isms‚ which is understandable‚ but this is very much an individual and compelling assumption'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaThe Times (June 2013)

'Extra punch is added with the powerful performance of ENO regular John Graham-Hall... Graham-Hall‚ happily‚ inhabits both stage and character with ease. We feel the man’s pomposity and age‚ taste the heat and sweat of his desperation in the grip of beauty and decay. The voice‚ gruffer than Bostridge’s‚ equally serves Aschenbach well: a voice that has lived‚ smoked too‚ but can also punch out recitatives with a clarity especially useful in a production without surtitles'

Death in Venice‚ English National OperaWhats on Stage.com (June 2013)

'It’s also a flawless celebration of Britten’s genius in his centenary year... John Graham Hall gives the role an authentic world-weariness‚ as he totters ever deeper into bewilderment and increasing desperation until he’s become the "young-old horror" he despises. His elegant tone is reminiscent of the peerless Philip Langridge and all-round it’s a miraculous portrayal...this revival can’t be recommended highly enough as an opportunity to experience the magic of opera...A knockout evening'

'Shortly before opening night it was announced that John Graham-Hall had been awarded the 2012 Abbiati Prize by the Association of Italian Music Critics for best male performer for his Aschenbach at La Scala last year; his Grimes displayed all the very considerable virtues of his previous Britten portrayal‚ especially an extremely vivid delivery of the text and such powerful acting that at times it seemed as if the music was flowing in and out of his body‚ and this without any hint of histrionics'

'John Graham-Hall ‚ è un Basilio convincente. Avvertiamo la duplicità del suo gioco scenico e la voce meriterebbe l’ascolto in un ruolo più importante /// John Graham-Hall‚ is a convincing Basilio. We perceive the duplicity of his stage play and the voice deserves to listen in a more important role'

'Ottima la squadra degli interpreti. John Graham-Hall è un tenore camaleontico per l’abilità con cui riesce facilmente a passare da un registro ad un altro /// Excellent team of interpreters. John Graham-Hall is a chameleon-like content for the skill with which it can easily pass from one register to another'

'John Graham-Hall è un indimenticabile Peter Grimes‚ scontroso‚ isolato‚ ruvido‚ a tratti iroso‚ ma anche malinconico e pacato‚ straordinario nella scena finale quando‚ carico di dolore‚ si avvia muto verso il suo destino‚ uscendo dalla finestra. Dotato di un timbro chiaro adattissimo al personaggio e molto attento alla parola‚ egli ha saputo ben contrapporre i momenti lirici a quelli in cui il canto si spezza fino a divenire antimusicale….nel finale applausi entusiastici per uno spettacolo davvero splendido sotto ogni punto di vista: imperdibile /// John Graham-Hall is an unforgettable Peter Grimes‚ sullen‚ isolated‚ rough‚ sometimes angry‚ but also melancholy and quiet‚ great in the final scene when‚ full of pain‚ you start to mute his fate‚ through the window. Equipped with a clear stamp very suitable to the character and very attentive to the word‚ he has been able to contrast the lyrical moments to those in which the song is broken up to become unmusical…. in the final enthusiastic applause for a truly beautiful from every point of view: not to be missed'

'...when Aschenbach is played by John Graham-Hall‚ who conveyed masterfully the almost wounding effect on his body of his obsession with Tadzio. Graham-Hall’s interpretation was memorable also for his exceptionally clear enunciation of the text‚ and for the way in which he invested the long and potentially rather boring stretches of recitative with an intense emotional charge...On March 12 the audience loved the show‚ awarding Graham-Hall the triumph he deserved'

'The long overdue company première of Benjamin Britten’s Death in Venice was welcomed with a warm nine minute applause at La Scala by an attentive audience...The light disappointment which preceded opening night for the cancellation of Ian Bostridge was wiped away by the compelling interpretation of tenor John Graham-Hall as Aschenbach. The singer displayed a solid middle range with an easy top‚ which made him a perfect fit for the role‚ originally written by the composer for tenor Robert Tear'

'Comedic timing is notoriously difficult to pull off alongside the demands of the singing‚ acting and choreography‚ and more often than not it just doesn’t gel at all with the operatic form. In this instance‚ however‚ there were a good number of sincere belly-laughs throughout‚ induced from the playful manner in which the cast genuinely seemed to enjoy the performance‚ reveling in the dramatic absurdity that the work is so rich in...The principal cast morphed with ease through their past‚ present and alien characters. Anne Sophie Duprels shone in particular with her extremely beautiful soprano‚ and John Graham-Hall captured Broucek’s essence perfectly‚ making us hate him‚ excuse him and love him in rapid turns'

'It falls to the central character to bear the brunt of the composer’s frustration‚ as Mr Broucek is teased‚ tormented and humiliated. But—a bit like Brecht’s Mother Courage—the antihero wins the audience’s sympathies despite the author’s best efforts. Thanks no doubt‚ on this occasion‚ to John Graham-Hall in the title role‚ whose permanently befuddled air masked an immaculate command as he tumbled through the often bewildering narrative!'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Scottish OperaMusicweb International (April 2010)

'...a cast who get fully inside the music...he wisely played up the humour so that he kept the audience’s sympathy for what is seldom a likeable character...well rounded tenor...'

'John Graham-Hall is a marvellous Broucek‚ by turns bumptious and boorish‚ rumpled and reeling‚ clutching his briefcase‚ leering at Málinka/Etherea/Kunka‚ feeling his way round the cellar walls‚ falling down in the gutter'

'Broucek himself is not a character whom we are supposed to warm to. John Graham-Hall managed to convey the fact that we are supposed to feel a little sneer towards this drunken everyman. The clarity of diction and the precision of his singing fitted well with Janácek’s particular ways of setting speech rhythms to music and allowed a controlled rage to bubble beneath the surface'

'...John Graham-Hall’s unusually vivid and detailed vocal and dramatic portrayal of Tikhon‚ a weak and physically inexpressive man trapped in a household of three different yet strong women with nowhere to hide. He caught the emotional desperation better than most interpreters‚ making his alcoholism very much a symptom of his situation rather than the cause'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaEvening Standard (March 2010)

'John Graham-Hall’s neurotic Tikhon is superb'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaFinancial Times (March 2010)

'John Graham-Hall‚ as Tichon‚ gives another of his definitive portrayals'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaGuardian (March 2010)

'...it is never moving. With the exception of John Graham-Hall’s Tikhon‚ Kátya’s helpless husband'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaIndependent (March 2010)

'...her weak and violent son Tikhon (a terrifically irrational John Graham-Hall) who can never shake off his poisonous inheritance...'

'John Graham-Hall...was just perfect as Tikhon – a snivelling‚ buttoned-up weakling‚ forever coming to the brink of expressing actual human emotion towards Katya‚ but always pulling back at the last moment. At the climactic moment of Katya’s confession in Act 3 (which was brilliantly staged‚ with a giant red-and-black Soviet propaganda poster of Hell being suddenly struck by lightning and crashing to the ground in slow motion) he finally releases all that pent-up emotion in a genuine cri de coeur – and yet the final image of the evening is that of Tikhon being led away by the hand by his mother'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaOperaticus.com (March 2010)

'Other outstanding performances included...John Graham-Hall perfectly embodied the subtlety of Katya’s feeble husband Tikhon‚ never commenting on his character’s pathetic nature‚ making the end horrible to watch as he discovers his dead wife'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaStage (March 2010)

'...John Graham-Hall making a good deal of her craven‚ cowardly husband‚ Tikhon'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaSunday Times (March 2010)

'ENO has gathered a fine ensemble cast around her‚ with the company stalwarts John Graham-Hall as the pusillanimous Tikhon'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaTelegraph (March 2010)

'...John Graham-Hall and Stuart Skelton as the dismal specimens of manhood between whom Katya is caught...quite exceptionally good'

Katya Kabanova‚ English National OperaTimes (March 2010)

'That Stuart Skelton’s buttoned-up Boris should turn out to be as spineless as Katya’s freakishly mother-fixated husband Tikhon is one of many ironies that Alden points up. Indeed‚ his final image is of the superb John Graham-Hall (pictured‚ with Racette)‚ as the snivelling Tikhon‚ pathetically clinging to the skirts of his mother Kabanicha'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthOpera (December 2009)

'He (Mr Broucek) is vividly brought to life by that versatile and perspicacious singer-actor John Graham-Hall in another closely observed portrait from his gallery of eccentrics. He ranks with Nigel Douglas in his ability to create Pooterish characters'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthCountry Life (October 2009)

'As the eponymous hero‚ John Graham-Hall is a delight‚ peevish and lean in the John Cleese manner‚ with a sure comic touch and vocal command'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthFinancial Times (October 2009)

'John Graham-Hall turns the title character into a haplessly repressed stick whose sexual fantasies and innate cowardice are all too believable: it’s a virtuoso performance...'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthGuardian (October 2009)

'The updating is nicely judged‚ giving a wry humour to the lunar excursion and a real poignancy to the historical one‚ as well as injecting a touch more humanity into the comedy in the process. The same lightness of touch carries over into John Graham-Hall’s beautifully observed and judged central performance as Broucek‚ complete with three-piece suit‚ briefcase and toothbrush moustache'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthSpectator (October 2009)

'John Graham-Hall’s Broucek‚ well-sung‚ is tall and initially dignified‚ instead of being a bumbling fat drunkard'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthStage (October 2009)

'Opera North fields a fine cast‚ too‚ most of them tripling up as Moon people and both ancient and modern inhabitants of Prague‚ with John Graham-Hall tirelessly determined as the flummoxed‚ cowardly Broucek'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthSunday Times (October 2009)

'... it’s a good-looking show‚ unmissable for John Graham-Hall’s brilliant assumption of the title role'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthTablet (October 2009)

'John Graham-Hall holds the evening together brilliantly as the peevish Broucek‚ in cheap suit‚ fiercly clutched briefcase (containing mostly sausages) and man-from-the-ministry moustache: this is a great comic turn‚ affectionate but pointed‚ characterful and expertly sung'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthTelegraph (October 2009)

'All praise‚ however‚ to an excellent cast‚ led by John Graham-Hall as a gangling Broucek‚ most of its members tripling roles in ’68 Prague‚ Hussite Prague and on the Moon‚ working hard to get the English translation across...'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthTimes (October 2009)

'...unmissable for John Graham-Hall’s brilliant assum­ption of the title role and a fine cast‚ from which Anne-Sophie Duprels and Jeffrey Lloyd-Roberts stand out in Janacek’s wondrously youthful love music‚ with fine character support from the Opera North stalwarts Donald Maxwell‚ Jonathan Best and Frances McCafferty'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthTimes (October 2009)

'Yet if it’s laughs you want‚ you have them with John Graham-Hall’s Basil Fawlty of a Broucek. It’s a subtly brilliant performance: disgust‚ scorn‚ cowardice‚ all eked out of a horribly ungrateful libretto'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthYork Press (October 2009)

'Broucek is far from an heroic figure and John Graham-Hall does not attempt to put a gloss on his stuffy‚ middlebrow personality. Since he sings with immense conviction‚ this only reinforces Broucek’s short-fused stupidity. The humour is in the crassness‚ both in our antihero and in the group-mentalities of the people he encounters'

'...this was a strong ensemble effort. John Graham-Hall was threateningly suave and scheming as Shuisky '

Boris Godunov‚ English National OperaSeen & Heard (November 2008)

'Another advantage is that this Boris doesn’t overwhelm the other parts. Prince Shuisky‚ in particular‚ is given more weight. He wasn’t just the stock villain of legend. John Graham-Hall’s strong‚ unfussy portrayal shows that it’s Shuisky’s tragedy too‚ for Russian audiences know what happens to him after the story in the opera ends'

Boris Godunov‚ English National OperaSpectator (November 2008)

'The highest-profiled character was the superb Shuisky of John Graham-Hall‚ a slimy column of pseudo-concerned bureaucracy‚ the one kind of disgusting specimen who would never be eliminated in Russia or anywhere else'

Love and other Demons‚ Glyndebourne FestivalOpera (October 2008)

'John Graham-Hall’s doctor...made the most of demanding role'

Love and other Demons‚ Glyndebourne FestivalGuardian (August 2008)

'There are wonderfully observed character roles from Jean Rigby as Sierva Maria’s fellow inmate and Felicity Palmer as the abbess‚ and from John Graham-Hall as a doctor (the only enlightenment figure in this god-obsessed society)'

'...strong performances also from John Graham Hall’s physician Abrenuncio...'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthTimes (July 2008)

'Yet if it’s laughs you want‚ you have them with John Graham-Hall’s Basil Fawlty of a Broucek. It’s a subtly brilliant performance: disgust‚ scorn‚ cowardice‚ all eked out of a horribly ungrateful libretto (bluntly translated by Andre and Fulljames). Naturally Broucek learns nothing from his adventures — except that he has survived by doing nothing. You won’t find another opera that teaches that'

Merry Widow‚ English National OperaGuardian (April 2008)

'Graham-Hall - a tenor Danilo rather than the usual baritone - is theatrically impeccable‚ as always.'

'John Graham Hall’s horribly hen-pecked Tichon is superbly observed: what a quivering jelly of a man.'

Die Fledermaus‚ Glyndebourne on TourOpera (December 2006)

'It was also good to hear Eisenstein sung by a tenor at last‚ especially since that tenor was John Graham-Hall. By turns crusty and manic‚ this all-singing‚ all-dancing Eisenstein was the start of the show.'

Magic Flue‚ English National OperaOnline Review London (October 2005)

'Monostatos is a figure of lust and pusillanimity‚ and John Graham-Hall provided a good dash of both.'

Salome‚ ENOIndependent (October 2005)

'John Graham-Hall was terrific in the role‚ his bilious words cast like swill before swine. But sung‚ not stammered out in lazy approximation of the musical line like some one could mention.'

Salome‚ ENOMusic.OMH (October 2005)

'Herod‚ on the other hand‚ is a taxing but rewarding role‚ and John Graham Hall - always a good performer - moved into a different league while giving the performance of a lifetime. His voice has grown in stature and can be compared with Jon Vickers in his prime. He has always been good at creating utterly convincing characters on stage‚ whether loathsome or sympathetic - Mime (Siegfried) comes to mind most recently - but his Herod is a complete triumph. From the decadent‚ dissolute lecher as he lusts after Salome to the bewildered‚ fearful and horrified figure as he orders the killing of a monster even greater than himself‚ he is compelling.'

Salome‚ ENOMusical Pointers (October 2005)

'There are really four principals in this piece‚ and the interaction between them is crucial. Of these John Graham Hall’s portrayal of Herod was probably the most complex‚ blending princely power with moral weakness. Unable to break from his complete thrall to his step daughter‚ yet constantly haunted by strange portents‚ his every word was audible and telling.'

Salome‚ ENO Stage (October 2005)

'Barker has a brilliant stepfather (Herod) in John Graham-Hall‚ desperately crumbling under his obsession.'

Eugine Onegin‚ ENOOpera (August 2005)

'John Graham Hall was the unforgettable Monsieur Triquet‚ sending up the character with gentle hilarity‚ where many singers go too far; coming not long after his Mime on the same stage‚ this was a reminder of what an incredibly versatile and valuable artist he is.'

Merry Wives of Windsor‚ Buxton FestivalTimes (July 2005)

'Incidental pleasures include John Graham-Hall ...as the idiotic Slender.'

Eugine Onegin‚ ENOSeen & Heard (June 2005)

'John Graham-Hall was a fun Monsieur Triquet (he sang his song in French).'

Peter Grimes‚ SalzburgGuardian Unlimited (March 2005)

'The most vivid performances come in the smaller roles‚ John Graham-Hall’s poisonous Boles.'

Die Zauberflöte‚ Royal Opera HouseMusicOMH.com (February 2005)

'John Graham-Hall made sure that Monostatos’ passages were elegantly phrased.'

Die Zauberflöte‚ Royal Opera HouseSeen and Heard (February 2005)

'John Graham-Hall was a seedy Monostatos‚ singing with bright tone and incisive phrasing.'

Die Zauberflöte‚ Royal Opera HouseTimes (February 2005)

'John Graham-Hall was a great panto-villain Monostatos straight out of Rocky Horror with his gang of time-warping munchkins.'

Messiah‚ Minnesota OrchestraPioneer Press (December 2004)

'...some wonderful moments.'

Messiah‚ Minnesota OrchestraStar Tribune (December 2004)

'Tenor John Graham-Hall was impressive right from the start‚ delivering a weighty‚ resonant - Comfort ye.'

'The curtain rises on John Graham-Hall’s hunched‚ brooding Mime‚ a figure of beady-eyed malevolence‚ like a youngish Albert Steptoe plotting a new humiliation of his rebellious son. Graham-Hall is a long-serving ENO stalwart in character roles‚ but this brilliantly played and sung Mime is his finest hour at the Coliseum‚ a world-class performance.'

Siefried‚ ENOTimes (November 2004)

'John Graham-Hall’s Mime was brilliantly hangdog.'

Man and Boy:Dada‚ AlmeidaIndependent (July 2004)

'John Graham-Hall’s incarnation of Schwitters was a heroic piece of virtuosity.'

'In a night of splendid performances Skelton is matched by Susan Bickley‚ stately and imperious as Kabanicha‚ the mother-in-law from hell‚ by Anna Grevelius as a spirited Varvara and by John Graham-Hall‚ lettuce-limp as Tikhon'

The Adventures of Mr Broucek‚ Opera NorthGuardian (January 0)

'The updating is nicely judged‚ giving a wry humour to the lunar excursion and a real poignancy to the historical one‚ as well as injecting a touch more humanity into the comedy in the process. The same lightness of touch carries over into John Graham-Hall’s beautifully observed and judged central performance as Broucek‚ complete with three-piece suit‚ briefcase and toothbrush moustache'